Deeper Pro+ Smart Sonar

The Deeper Pro+ is one of the best fish finders under $300 at the moment. It’s a model similar to the Garmin Striker Cast GPS that we’ve already covered here. It does not come with a head unit, but uses your phone or tablet as the unit display for the sonar and GPS data.

Key Features and Specifications

• App: Fish Deeper
• Sonar: Dual-beam
• Frequency and Coverage:
  55° @ 90 kHz
  15° @ 290 kHz
• Depth Capability: 260 ft. (80 m)
• Transducer: Built-in
• Broadcasting range: 330 ft. (100 m)
• GPS: High-precision, built-in
• Mapping: Bathymetric maps

Unit construction and accessories

To begin with, the Deeper Pro+ features a water-tight ABS casing, 2.55″ (6.5 cm) in diameter, and weighs 0.22 lbs (100g). It features three attachment points and there are two attachment bolts included with the unit, so you just screw one in, tie it at the end of the fishing line, and cast it in the water. A neoprene pouch is also included with the unit for easy portability.

The Deeper Pro+ is equipped with a lithium-ion battery. The top section of the ABS casing is removable and allows access to the USB connector so you can charge the battery. A USB cable is included with the fish finder, but it does not have an adapter. So you either connecting you an adapter that you already have or to a PC. There is also a LED indicator “under the hood” which should glow green when the battery is fully charged. It should also glow blue when the temperature is under 37.4°F (3°C) which is too cold for the battery to charge.

The battery can last up to 6 hours when fully charged. The unit automatically turns on and broadcasts a WiFi signal when is cast into the water, but also automatically turns off when removed from the water.

Fish Deeper App

The Deeper Pro+ Smart Sonar connects to your smartphone or tablet via the Fish Deeper app. Needless to say, this app is available for both iOS and Android devices. Like most other apps, Fish Deeper will require your to register and log in with a username, email, and password.

For Android devices, the connection is simple. Once you cast the fish finder and open the app, you should be ready to use it. For iOS, you will have to cast your fish finder into the water, then navigate to the tablet or phone settings, open the WiFi settings, and connect it from there. The manual provides all the information for this, though.

The Deeper Pro+ offers a broadcasting range of 330 ft. (100 m) which is further than most other similar fish finders that connect via Bluetooth, so it’s quite a plus. Needless to say, if you keep it within this range, it should be able to send data to your phone or tablet with no problem.

The app itself has a pretty versatile interface. It has quick launch buttons for the phone’s camera (which is quite neat if you want to quickly snap a photo of a fish you caught), calendar, maps, weather, settings, and others. It also has a split-view function so you can see both the sonar and the bathymetric mapping in the same window, in split-screen.

Sonar features

The Deeper Pro+ fish finder integrates a dual-beam sonar system that operates at 90 kHz and 290 kHz. The transducer is also built-in and when the unit is cast into the water, it should always turn with the sensor facing the bottom. Needless to say, the transducer is also dual-beam. It casts two conical beams with a coverage of 55° @ 90 kHz, and 15° @ 290 kHz. The sonar does not have CHIRP technology but does offer a pretty decent target separation of approx. 1″ (2.5 cm). Also, its maximum depth capability is 260 ft. (80 m), which should suffice for most lakes, reservoirs, and other bodies of freshwater.

The Fish Deeper app makes available several sonar functions. To begin with, it has a fish symbol mode similar to the Selective Fish ID available with the Humminbird PiranhaMax 4 DI, for example. This assigns a fish icon to any detected target interpreted as fish. Depending on its size, the icon can be smaller or larger. It also shows the approximate depth of each fish target.

An Amplitude Scope feature (vertical flasher) and a Circular Flasher are available as well. The A-Scope feature shows the return of the most recent sonar ping. Conversely, the Circular Flasher puts the sonar data into a ring format, showing the bottom and the lure inputs on the outer ring as red and green color lines. The Circular Flasher mode is great for ice fishing as well as stationary fishing from a dock. It can be viewed in split-screen with the regular sonar mode as well.

The app has several alarms. There is a fish alarm that you can use when the Deeper sonar remains stationary. This enables your phone to beep when a fish passes through the sonar beam. There is also a depth alarm which you can use when navigating with a boat to avoid shallow waters and getting grounded.

Other notable features that we can mention here are the water temperature reading (the unit has a temperature sensor built-in as well), self-adjusting depth scale, bottom hardness, sensitivity adjustment, and more.

Navigation features

The Deeper Pro+ Smart Sonar has its own built-in GPS receiver. Therefore, based on the sonar data and the GPS data, the app can record the depth contours of the body of water that you’re scanning, creating custom, real-time bathymetric maps. The app offers a Boat Mode and an Onshore Mode. When in Boat Mode, it uses the GPS on your smartphone or tablet, while when using the Onshore Mode, it uses the GPS receiver built-in the Deeper Pro+ unit for map creation.

The mapping feature can be viewed in split-screen with the sonar. It enables you to instantly monitor the contour detail, depths, and locate the best fishing areas. The app also has a history feature so you can access unlimited data of the sonar imaging recordings and bathymetric map logs.

The Pros

• Compact construction;
• Free Fish Deeper app;
• WiFi connection type (better than Bluetooth);
• Quick access for calendar, weather, phone camera, notes, maps, sharing, and settings on the app interface;
• Dual-beam sonar;
• Excellent depth capability – 260 ft;
• Excellent broadcasting range – 330 ft;
• Circular Flasher and Split-Screen functions;
• Fish Icons, Display Sensitivity, A-Scope, and Sonar Data Storage;
• Built-in GPS;
• Bathymetric mapping function;
• Weather data function;
• Easy to use from the shore, from boat, or on ice;
• Long-lasting battery;
• Micro USB / USB cable included;
• Portable bag included;
• Two attachment bolts included.

The Cons

• The fishing line can snap and you can lose the sonar;
• Deeper sonar arm mount is not included.

Summary

The Deeper Pro+ Smart Sonar is a portable and castable fish finder that uses your smartphone or tablet as a display unit. It comes with a free and highly versatile app for iOS and Android. It offers dual-beam sonar, a depth range up to 260 ft., and a WiFi broadcast range of 330 ft. It also has built-in GPS and a bathymetric mapping feature. In all, it’s a great fish finder for both onshore and boat fishing, affordable, versatile, and easy to use.